Family, 2 missing Florida boys in Cuba

Officials believe a Florida couple suspected of kidnapping their two sons from the woman’s parents are in Cuba.

The Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office reports that it received information Monday that the Hakken family had arrived on the island nation. Investigators say they’re working with the FBI and the U.S. State Department to verify their reports.

Authorities say Joshua Michael Hakken entered his mother-in-law’s house north of Tampa early Wednesday, tied her up and fled with his young sons.

Authorities had been searching by air and sea for a boat Hakken recently bought. The truck the family had been traveling in was found late Thursday, abandoned in a parking garage in Madeira Beach.

The boys had been living since last year with their maternal grandparents, who were granted permanent custody Tuesday.

Authorities have previously characterized the Hakkens as “anti-government.”

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